Transfer adhesive process and product



Feb. 27, 1940. A. BENNETT 2,191,704

TRANSFER ADHESIVE PROCESS AND PRODUCT Filed March 26, 1935 INV EN TOR.

ARTHUR Bsmvsrr BY A 4 ATTORNEYS.

Patented Feli. 27, 1940 .umrsa STATES PATENT OFFICE Arthnr Bennett, SanFrancisco, can. Application Mai-c1; as, 1935, Serial No. 13,037

This invention relates generally to the gummed paper art, and moreparticularly to paper cloth or other flexible sheet or strip materialcoated on one side with a layer of adhesive which is permanently tacky,such as the prepared sheets and strips now readily obtainable on themarket coated with tacky gum. One of the objects of the presentinvention is to provide improvements in such ever-tacky gummed sheets orstrips together with a method of procedure whereby the ever-tacky gummedlayer may be readily transferred bodily from its supporting sheet orstrip to any other desired surface, the sheet or strip beingsubstantially denuded of the tacky gum layer by peeling it therefrom.Another object is to provide an improved means of gumming posters,prints, or other sheets of paper or card signs to provide one or morelocalized areas of ever-tacky gum on its surface pro:

tected on the outer side by. its original supporting sheet and whichsupporting sheet will be adapted to be peeled away to. expose the tackygum when desired for sticking the signs, sheets, or posters to showwindows, walls and :5 doors, by merely pressing the tacky gummed areasthereagainst. Other objects and advantages ofthelinvention willappear inthe following description and accompanying drawing.

In the accompanying drawing Fig. 1 is a perspective View of a roll of,flexible tape or strip of paper, .cloth or othermaterial coated on oneside with an ever-tacky gumv in a manner to make the gum layer itselftransferable from the tape to other surfaces such as of paper,cardboard, sheet metal, etc.

Fig. 2 is an enlarged perspective view of a piece of the coated tape.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a sheet sign showing strips of myimproved ever-tacky tape applied thereto. J

Fig. 4 is a view similar to that of Fig. 3 but shows the flexiblesupport of one of the strips being peeled from the ever-tacky gum leftadhering to the sign, so that the sign is then in condition for stickingto a,show window by simple pressing of the gummed areas against thewindow.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of a small sheet or patch of flexiblesupporting-material carrying on one side a localized area of myevertacky gum.

Fig. 6 is a view similar to that of Fig. 5 but shows a round patch orarea'of ever-tacky gum on the surface of a rectangular supporting sheet.

Briefly described, my invention comprises providlng a layer of specialnormally ever-tacky 811m adhesive on a specially prepared supportingtape or strip of paper, of relatively low attraction for the gum, insuch a manner as to permit of subsequently pressing the tacky face 5 of.the layer tightly against any other or second surface, such as of paper,cardboard, or sheet metal advertising signs, posters or prints, to whichit is desired to transfer the .gum, and, at any subsequent time, peelingthe supporting 10 strip away thus leaving the layer --of ever-tacky umadhering to the new surface and exposing its opposite tacky side so thatit may be stuck by pressure against any third surface while stilladhering to the second surface. The first or 15 temporary support shouldbe a thin flexible paper, Cellophane, or cloth with a hard speciallyprepared surface so that it may be peeled away from the gum layer, andmay be in the form of small sheets, strips or tapes.

As before implied, sheets, strips or tapes coated with ever-tacky gumare in themselves not new, but they have heretofore been of a characterwhich permitted sticking them to another surface and removing them anynumber of times 25 complete with their tacky layer, such, for instance,as the well-known ever-tacky tape sold under the name of Scotch Tapewhich has on one side a coating of ever-tacky gum which cannot bestripped from the tape. However, my an invention was the result of thediscovery by me that it would be a great advance in the art for somepurposes if such a layer of ever-tacky gum could be transferred bodilyfrom its first sup- P rt to the surface of the final article desired 5 vto be locally gummed with ever-tacky gum, and when desired to use saidarticle the first support could be peeled off and discarded so as toleave a layer of ever-tacky gum on the surface of said article forthereafter sticking to a third surface, 40 such as-for sticking aprinted sign to a show window.

The chief requirement tomake the invention practicable was, of course,an ever-tacky gum which would stay on a supporting sheet, strip or 45tape, and yet when pressed tightly against a. second surface wouldadhere to the latter with a tenacity much greater than its adherence tothe original supporting sheet so that the latter could be peeled away.This, of course, meant 50 that the layer of ever-tacky gum must-stickrather lightly to the original supporting sheet so that it could leavebodily when its face was in greater adhering contact with a secondsurface. I have discovered that this result could 5 be attained byproper selection or treatment of the face of the original supportingsurface so that the ever-tacky gum would not get an undue hold upon itand by balancing the proportions of the ingredients in the ever-tackygum com pound so that it would let go of the first supporting surface,or rather permit the first support to be peeled from it when the outerface of the ever-tacky gum was pressed tightly into adhering relation toa second surface or article to which it was desired to transfer thelayer of ever-tacky gum. The required nature of the surface of theoriginal or first support for the ever-tacky gum layer will be describedon the next page.

A suitable ever-tacky gum was found in the following ingredients:

Pale crepe crude rubber, first preferably milled to effect bettersolution pounds, about 30 Rosin oil do 4 /2 Benzol gallons, about 50 allplaced in a suitable closed mixer and agitated until dissolved into asmooth thin paste.

In place of rosin oil, pine oil foots, or Canada balsam, or balsam ofpine may be used. Also, in place of the benzol, benzene, carbontetrachloride, or other solvents may be used.

As the'temporary or the first flexible support a smooth hard-surfacedpaper, parchment, Cellophane, or cloth, may be used, especially if givena surface treatment with talc, or parafiine and subsequent substantialremoval of these agents so as to leave only the merest trace to preventthe permanent adherence of the evertacky gum coating.

A very satisfactory fiexible first support is found in the so-calledHolland cloth, as its highly glazed surface or filling of starchy natureis found to readily releaseitself from the evertacky gum and permitpeeling away therefrom when the gum is stuck under pressure to any.

ordinary second surface desired, such as cardboard, glass, paper, metal,dry paint, etc.

The liquid gum mixture may be spread in a thin layer on the first ortemporary supporting sheet, strip or tape by any desired means whichwill yield an even and substantial layer. In quantity production thetape is continually advanced under a properly shaped nozzle or over aroller feeding a layer of the adhesive to the tape, and the coated tapeis carried far enough to permit the gum to set to its permanent tackycondition, or this result may be expedited with the aid of any suitabledrying box or oven and exhaust fans or air circulation, and as soon asthe applied layer is firm (though of course tacky) the ever-tacky tapeis rolled upon itself with the tacky coating preferably face out. Thelast or outer turn around the roll will then have the tacky materialexposed and for purposes of shipment this outer surface may be coveredwith another strip of the Holland cloth, or a strip of paraffined paperor waxed paper, or such a covering strip may be extended with thecarrying strip throughout the roll if desired though is not required.

It is also highly desirable that the taclw gum layer be of less widththan the temporary or supporting tape, or somewhat within the area ofany sheet of temporary supporting material as indicated in Figs. 2, 5,and 6, and wherein the taclg compound is designated I and the supportingsheet 2, 5 and 6, respectively. This provides the necessary free oruncoated margin wherewith to grip the supporting sheet in starting topeel it from the gum layer when transferring the layer to the secondsurface, also protects an article to which the strips have been appliedfrom any sticky edges being exposed before it is desired to peel thetemporary strip from the gum.

In Fig. 1 the roll of tape constituting the temporary support isdesignated 2 and its tacky coating l, and its optional covering strip 8.The roll is preferably wound on a cardboard or wooden spool or core 5'.It is to be noted that when the tape is wound on the roll with the taclwlayer on the outer side of the tape it will always release itself fromthe face of the next layer of compound below when unrolling withouttending to peel the layer from the surface on which it a more thoroughtreatment of the back of the tape or sheet with talc or parafline, asexplained,

it would make no difference on which side the tacky compound was rolled.

Since the primary object of the invention is to provide a method andmeans for bodily transferring or offsetting such an ever-tacky layerfrom the original carrying surface to another surface, such as a paper,cardboard, or other sign, so that the latter may be suspended as on awindow glass or other place desired, particular attention is called toFig. 3 which shows a cardboard printed sign 1 and across the face ofwhich at opposite margins of the sheet two strips of my special transfertape 2 have been applied face down and forced into contact underpressure. In this condition (before peeling the temporary tape from thegum layer) the signs or sheets may be freely handled, stacked or shippedas an article of manufacture without any stickymatter coming intocontact between the sheets, and at any subsequent time the originalsupporting tapes 2 (now forming protective covering strips) may beeasily peeled from the ever-tacky gum layer by grasping the free marginsof the tape and pulling it back while holding the sign with the otherfingers as indicated in Fig. 4 wherein the forward strip or tape is thusbeing peeled from the ever-tacky gum l which is left tightly adhering tothe sign I, so that the sign may in turn be pressed against a showwindow and will firmly adhere to it, yet may be peeled from the showwindow together with its gummed areas, at any subsequent time, leavingthe window glass substantially clean. I

Of course the strips may be applied to the back of the sign when it isdesired to stick the sign to the outside of the window, or upon a largecard, or other surface; also the strips or the smaller patches as ofFigs. 5 or 6 may be placed on the margins of sheets of paper orcardboard before printing, as signs or posters, if desired. f r

In applying the strips or patches to the sign or other surface to whichit is desired to transfer the gum, better results are had ifconsiderable pressure be applied as in a suitable press, and the tape orpatch permitted to remain for some time beforepeeling the covering stripfrom the gum; also, it sometimes is desirable to slightly moisten thetape or brush over its tacky surface with a volatile solvent for the gumsuch as'benzol, benzene, etc., apply the tape under pressure, and awaitthe evaporation of the solvent before stripping the cover; or, as astill further modification, the freshly coated tape (or patches ofFigures 5 and 6) before the initially setting of.

their applied gum layers maybe at once applied to a sign or sheet ofpaper and permitted to set in contact with it, and the cover will befound to peel off later when the gum has set. I

From the preceding description my speciall prepared ever-tacky transfertape will be seen to clearly distinguish from other gummed tapes asfollows:

From Scotch tape, as this is specially prepared with a sticky or tackylayer which clings so tenaclously to its original carrier tape that itmay be applied to a second surface such as a show window, dry paintedsurface, sheet of metal, etc. many times in succession and strippedtherefrom to always bring away with it its complete adhesive layer sothat it will be ready for useagain, almost without limit to the numberof times it is used. a

From ordinary tire tape, as this, though sticky or tacky, is a softcloth tape impregnated with a thin tacky rubber compound which soremains for a long time, but of which the rubber or gum surface cannotbe transferred as it is bound into the cloth tape fibers.

From surgeons tape, as this, though coated with a much thicker andsofter layer'of ever-tacky rubber compound, if stuck to a sheet of hardpaper, glass or metal, absolutely cannot be removed except by tearingthe paper, and/or gum. And when placing it on the flesh of a person,although the warmth of the body partially melts the rubber layer, stillthe tape and its layer may generally be removed 'by a quick sharp pullto break off the many small hairs which become more or less embeddedinto the gummy layer, though it is quite the practice to apply benzineto the tape to dissolve the gum so that the tape can be removed withouthurting the patient. As surgeon's tape is frequently used for itsinherent strength, adherence of its gum layer to the tape itself isimportant, and it contains no feature looking to the separation of itsgum layer from the tape such as constitutes the all important feature ofapplicants invention, therefore cannot be used for the same purpose.

Having thus described my invention and some of its modifications, what Iclaim is:

1. The method of applying a normally evertacky layer of gum to thesurface of an article such as an advertising print, sign or poster whichcomprises depositing a layer of normally evertacky gum compound in fluidcondition on a flexible carrier sheet of a size to project beyond saidlayer and of a surface nature of low attraction therefor so as to adaptthe ever-tacky gum layer to be subsequently released bodily from saidcarrier sheet when the layer is set to ever-tacky condition, then beforethe ever-tacky compound layer has set placing the wet face of thecompound layer against the desired article, permitting the compoundlayer to set, and thereafter while the compound layer is still in itsever-tacky condition peeling the flexible carrier sheet from saidcompound layer without the use of a solvent and leaving the compoundlayer bodily transferred to said article and with the rear surface ofthe compound layer exposed in ever-tacky condition ready for sticking bypressure alone.

2. The method or applying a normally. evertackylayer of gum to the.surface of an article such as an advertising print, sign or poster,which comprises depositing a layer of normally evertacky gum compound influid condition on a flexible carrier sheet of a size to project beyondsaid layer and of a surface nature oflow attraction therefor so as toadapt the ever-tacky gum layer to be subsequently released bodily fromsaid carrier sheet when the layer is set to ever-tacky condition,permitting the ever-tacky compound layer to set, pressing the set butever-tacky face of the compound layer against the desired article, andthereafter while the compound layer is still in its ever-tacky conditionpeeling the flexible carrier sheet from said compound layer without theuse of a solvent and leaving the compound layer bodily transferred tosaid article and with the rear surface of the compound layer exposed inever-tacky condition ready for sticking by pressure alone against 'ashow window or other final supporting surface.

3. A product consisting of a backing sheet of Holland cloth serving as atemporary support for a layer of a normally ever-tacky adhesive coatedon one side only of said sheet, said backing sheet provided with asurface of a'nature giving only limited adhesion with the ever-tackyadhesive layer, whereby in use the ever-tacky adhesive layer may betransferred bodily from said backing sheet to another object by pressureof the exposed surface of said layer thereagainst, and the Ho]- landcloth peeled from said ever-tacky adhesive layer without the use of asolvent, and thereby exposing the rear face of said layer in ever-tackycondition.

4. A product consisting of a tape of Holland cloth serving as atemporary support for a layer of normally ever-tacky adhesive coated onone side only of the tape and of lesser width than the tape, said tapeprovided with a surface of a nature on its coated side giving onlylimited adhesion with the ever-tacky adhesive layer, whereby in use theever-tacky adhesive layer may be transferred bodily from said tape toanother object by. pressure of the exposed surface of the layerthereagainst and the tape peeled from said ever-tacky layer without theuse of a solvent, the uncoated side of said tape provided with a surfaceof such a nature and limited attraction for said ever-tacky adhesivelayer as to permit rolling of the coated tape in a roll and subsequentunrolling without stripping of the layer from the coated side of thetape.

5. A product consisting of a flexible backing sheet serving as atemporary support for a layer of a normally ever-tacky adhesive coa edon one side only of said sheet, and which backing sheet is provided witha surface of a nature giving only limited adhesion with the ever-tackyadhesive layer, whereby in use the ever-tacky adhesive layer may betransferred bodily from said backing sheet to another object by pressureof the exposed tacky surface of said layer thereagainst, and the backingsheet peeled from said evertacky adhesive layer without the use of asolvent, said flexible backing sheet further provided with a bare marginextending beyond the evertacky adhesive layer.

6. The method of applying an adhesive film to the surface of an articlewhich comprises depos- 4 1 iting from a spout or nozzle a pressuresensitive adhesive film in fluid condition on a glazed, flexible carrierhaving a limited degree of adhesion therefor, pressing it against asurface having a greater degree of adhesion for the adhesive and thenremoving the carrier, whereby the adhesive is transferred from thecan'ier to the surface.

'7. The method of applying an adhesive film to the surface of an articlewhich comprises depositing a pressure sensitive normally tacky adhesivefilm in fluid condition on a glazed, flexible carrier having a limiteddegree of adhesion therefor while leaving a margin of the carrier bare,pressing the film against a surface having a greater degree of adhesionfor the adhesive, per,- mitting it to thus remain until the adhesive-hasset to tacky condition,'and thereafter removing the carrier by peelingit from the adhesive film.

- whereby the adhesive is transferred from the carrier to the surface. a

8. The method of applying a normally tacky adhesive film to the surfaceof an article whichcomprises depositingv a pressure sensitive normallytacky adhesive film in fluid condition on a flexible carrier having alimited degree of adhesion therefor while leaving a margin of thecarrier bare, permitting the fluid film to set to its normally tackycondition, and thereafter pressing the tacky adhesive film againsta'surface hav-' is provided with a surface of a nature giving onlylimited adhesion with the ever-tacky adhesive layer, whereby in use theever-tacky adhesive layer may be transferred bodily from said backingsheet to another object by pressure of the exposed tacky surface of saidlayer thereagainst, and the backing sheet peeled from said evertackyadhesive layer without the use of a solvent, said flexible backing sheetfurther'provided with a bare margin extending beyond the ever-tackyadhesive layer. s 1

10. A product comprising a roll of flexible tape serving as a temporarysupport for a layer of a normally ever-tacky adhesive coated on one sideonly of said tape, and which tape is provided with a surface of a naturegiving only limited adhesion with the ever-tacky adhesive layer, wherebyin use the ever-tacky adhesive layer may be transferred bodily from saidtape to another ob- Ject by pressure of the exposed tacky surface ofsaid layer thereagainst and'thetape peeled from said ever-tacky adhesivelayer, said tape in said roll being rolled upon itself with the coatedside facing outwardly, and whereby when unrolling the tape the coatingdoes not tend to peel from land cloth provided with a surface of anature" tape to another object by pressure-of the exposed tacky surfaceof said layer thereagainst and the tape peeled from said ever-tackyadhe-' sive layer, said tape in said roll being rolled upon itself withthe coated side facing outwardly, and whereby when unrolling the tapethe coating does not tend to peel from. .the side of the tape upon whichit was coated.

ARTHUR BENNETT.

